What if Sita and Draupadi belonged to same era and had been friends? The founder of Keelaka dance company Jyotsna Shourie and Aneesha Grover, explored this imaginary friendship through Bharatnatyam, contemporary dance and theater. Beautiful still poses were inspired by the temple carving and a few movements were from Kuchipudi.

The conversations between Sita and Draupadi began with how Sita, a dedicated wife who has always followed her husband had to go through agnipariksha to prove her chastity. While Draupadi, born out of Agni, invites Sita to dance and have some fun. Sakhi witnessed the popular stories from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata from the point of view of Sita and Draupadi. How they look at their respective swayamvars. The tough challenges their fathers had kept to find a suitor for them – Draupadi says, “It looks as if our fathers never wanted us to get married!” 

Heartwarming, poignant, and light-hearted dialogues by Jyotsna Shourie and Aneesha Grover struck a chord with the audience at Auroville, who responded with enthusiastic applause.

Sakhi — a conversation between Sita and Draupadi — explored what happens to them after their marriages to Rama and Arjuna, and how they feel about their destinies. Their emotions were beautifully translated through dance and dialogue.

When the Pandavas lose everything — including Draupadi — to the Kauravas in the game of dice, she laments, “Though I have five husbands, none came to my rescue while Dushashan and Duryodhana insulted me.” She questions, What if I hadn’t provoked the Pandavas to fight the Kauravas? What was truly gained after the Kurukshetra war?

Draupadi bares her soul to her Sakhi, Sita: “I loved all my five husbands equally, yet they believed I loved Arjuna more. None of them took me to heaven with them.” And what of Arjuna? Did he love Draupadi? No — he was enamoured of Subhadra, Ulupi, and Chitrangada.

The episode of Rama and Sita’s exile, Sita’s abduction by Ravana while Rama pursues the golden deer, and Hanuman’s heroic role in reuniting them were brought alive with sensitivity and humour. Amrita Sivakumar’s portrayal of Hanuman and Shakuni was marked by expressive movements and a fine sense of comic timing that drew warm appreciation from the audience.

Sakhi also explored the parallels between the lives of Draupadi and Sita, sharing the joys and sorrows of womanhood through graceful dance sequences and witty yet thought-provoking dialogues. The dialogues highlighted Draupadi’s boldness and courage, while the delicate choreography captured Sita’s beauty and gentleness.

Tushar Bharadwaj as Rama and Benjamin Jacob as Arjuna delivered flawless performances — their fluid, contemporary movements brought to mind the style of Terence Lewis. Sagar Vashista, in the dual roles of Ravana and Dushashana, portrayed both characters with convincing wickedness.

Aneesha Grover as Sita was graceful and expressive, while Nandita Kalan, as Draupadi, stole the show towards the end when Sita teasingly calls her “Bossy.”

The dialogues and music, with an original soundtrack by O.S. Arun and MadStarBase, were the true heroes of the production.

Sakhi was staged at Veenapani Chawla’s Adishakti, a space equipped with state-of-the-art technology. The evocative sound design by Sambhavi Thakur and lighting by B. Charles enhanced the performance, making the overall experience truly magical.